A Black Lives Matter protest more accessible to those in the disabled community is being organized for next Friday in Portsmouth.
On Tuesday, June 1, Keith Howard, executive director of Hope for New Hampshire Recovery was excited. For the first time in more than a year, Howard announced, the Manchester nonprofit would be holding indoor recovery meetings, doing away with COVID precautions like temperature taking, social distancing, and — most significantly — mask requirements.
Over the past year, the world adapted to virtual zoom meetings and reading facial expressions from behind masks, so it’s no surprise that social and conversational skills may be rusty for many. While the shift to a remote workplace and personal quarantine was generally challenging, it likely became a haven for those suffering from social anxiety disorder. Now, as the nation begins to return from a state of quarantine, doctors and academics alike are exploring how the return will impact those with anxiety disorders along with the general population.
Much has been made of the fact that unemployment compensation checks will be reduced by $300 per week in New Hampshire on June 19 because Gov. Chris Sununu is joining other Republican governors in opting out of a federal pandemic aid program.
But what might not be so well known is that about 15,000 people -- nearly half of those receiving unemployment in the state -- will lose all unemployment benefits as of that day because the governor is also taking the state out of other federal programs that expand and extend unemployment benefits.
In a few weeks, the 262 graduating seniors at Salem High School will be able to participate in four days of activities that might have seemed unfathomable at the beginning of the school year. It will almost look like a typical senior week, except that almost all activities have been adjusted in some way due to the pandemic.
Antibodies are proteins that the body makes in response to infections or immunizations. Once your body has antibodies for a virus like COVID, it’s better able to fight off infection from that virus in the future. Emerging research shows that mothers like Gravell who have been vaccinated for COVID-19 pass antibodies through breast milk, providing some level of protection to their nursing children.
Over the past year, Kate Dinwiddie of Bedford has worried about the impact that isolation will have on her son Andrew, who is 18 months. Andrew was still an infant when social distancing became the norm, and Dinwiddie fretted that he was missing out on developmentally-important interactions with other toddlers.
A year ago, most working parents — particularly mothers — would have said that it was difficult to balance the demands of home life and work. That’s before the coronavirus hit, shutting down schools and daycares, disrupting routines, and forcing more than 1 million people from the workforce in September alone. Most of the people who left the workforce were women, who were twice as likely as men to blame their departure on lack of childcare.
NH Gives takes place 5 p.m. to 5 p.m. June 8-9. Registration for the event is now open and will be until May 17. Over 325 nonprofits have already signed up. The platform is a place where donors can learn more about participating nonprofits and watch them compete for additional cash goals on leaderboards.
Medical malpractice lawsuits are expensive to pursue and could be difficult to prove in the context of a worldwide disease that has been especially hard on elderly and ailing nursing home residents.
Also, an opinion issued nearly a year ago from then-New Hampshire Attorney General Gordon MacDonald, which was requested by Health Commissioner Lori Shibinette, has had a chilling effect on pandemic-related litigation, said personal injury attorney Anthony Carr.
Even as New Hampshire’s COVID-19 vaccination program shifts into high gear, a highly contagious variant of the virus is spreading, overall case numbers are increasing and a significant segment of the population doesn’t want to be inoculated.
According to the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, at least 72 people in New Hampshire and more than 11,000 across the country have contracted the so-called U.K. variant, which was first documented in the state in February. Two members of the University of New Hampshire Durham community are among those who have contracted it.
New Hampshire has long grappled with a shortage of qualified nursing professionals, an issue that has been laid bare by the strain of the COVID-19 pandemic.
During the health crisis, Gov. Chris Sununu has issued several orders aimed at helping shore up the gap, including one that made some nursing students eligible for temporary licenses to aid with the state's COVID-19 response, and another that provided $300 per week stipends to health care workers.
Now, the governor is trying to provide another incentive to bring health care professionals to the state and encourage local graduates to stay: Expanded student loan repayment.
The recent shootings in Atlanta, Georgia, that killed eight people, six of whom were Asian women, has sparked a national conversation about Asian American discrimination and agression.
That conversation has made its way to New Hampshire, where Asian Americans make up 3% of the population, making them the second largest minority in the state. On NH PBS’ The State We’re In, Dr. Monica Chiu, who teaches Asian American studies and English at the University of New Hampshire, said blaming Asian Americans for national hardship or illness has been seen before in American history.
Last month Evan Mallett, owner and chef at Black Trumpet restaurant in Portsmouth, received an email that made him teary-eyed. It was from a local, who had picked up a free meal that Mallett and his staff had made for people who are experiencing food insecurity during the pandemic.
“With my current employment status, buying food from a restaurant is not an option...I am a foodie, former server, laid off retail manager now,” wrote the person, who asked that Mallett keep them anonymous. “I really cannot explain how… happy my mouth and tummy are right now. So again, THANK YOU for satiating my foodie taste buds and warming my soul.”
For Mallett, the email summed up what he describes as a “calling” to help feed the hungry during the pandemic.
There has been strong tourist trade in the 1,600-person White Mountains town, near Loon Mountain Resort and not far from Cannon Mountain, Waterville Valley Resort and other attractions. Lincoln has approved plans for four new hotels and building permits for 20 new houses.
The only potential bump in the road, as Burbank sees it, is a shortage of workers to wait tables, tend bar and clean rooms. He wonders whether federal supplemental unemployment benefits dissuade people from joining the workforce.
Like most everyone else in the Granite State, the McBees need to get out of their house every once in a while. But the Merrimack residents tended to follow the safe practices suggested by the state and the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, and were hesitant to venture to an indoor option, even though wineries are operating at half-capacity, per state guidelines.
Despite teachers asking to be moved up in the vaccination cue, it will be seniors and a few others with April appointments for first shots invited to a mass vaccination event at NH Motorspeedway in Loudon this weekend, said Gov. Chris Sununu.
Sununu explained his reasoning on this and a variety of other issues-- including a controversial bill aiming to ban “divisive” training on sex and race and division at the statehouse-- during a recent interview on NH PBS’ digital public affairs show, The State We’re In.
